Jean-Philippe Mateta's participation in Crystal Palace's recent FA Cup match ended abruptly when he was stretchered off the field following a severe challenge from Millwall goalkeeper Liam Roberts. The incident, which occurred just six minutes into the game, saw Roberts leave his box and catch Mateta's head with a high boot while the latter attempted to challenge for a high ball. This reckless challenge resulted in a straight red card for Roberts and a serious injury for Mateta, who required 25 stitches for a laceration to his left ear.
Mateta was immediately taken to the hospital after the incident, where medical staff treated him for the severe laceration. Fortunately, all scans came back clear, and he was discharged later that day. Despite his injury, Mateta shared on Instagram that he was doing well and expressed gratitude towards his fans for their support.
"I'm sure that the goalkeeper didn't want to injure JP in this situation because no player wants this. But if you go for the ball like this with the intensity in the head, you just can't do it because it's so dangerous. I don't want to blame him, but it's a terrible foul." – Steve Parish
The incident cast a shadow over Crystal Palace's progression to the FA Cup quarter-finals, a feat celebrated by Eagles' chairman Steve Parish during a half-time interview. Parish described the tackle as "the most reckless challenge I've ever seen" and expressed his concern for Mateta's safety rather than anger towards the event.
"Going to the FA Cup quarter-finals is a great achievement and now fingers crossed, we're hoping the best for JP." – Steve Parish
Millwall boss Alex Neil downplayed the severity of the incident, mentioning he hadn't reviewed it in detail. However, Neil acknowledged the harshness of the challenge and expressed hope for Mateta's swift recovery.
"I wasn't really angry [in his half-time interview], I hope I didn't come across like that. I watch a lot of football and it was some challenge." – Alex Neil
Neil speculated that Roberts didn't intend to harm Mateta, attributing the rash decision to the pressure of the game. He suggested that Roberts might be feeling remorseful about his actions.
"You've got to assume the kid doesn't mean it. I think he's het up, there's a lot of pressure and he hasn't played for them that much. I'm sure he'll want to apologise and I heard he's very upset himself." – Alex Neil
Despite the unfortunate event, Crystal Palace secured their place in the FA Cup quarter-final draw. Nonetheless, Parish emphasized the need to address such incidents within the sport.
"There's a lot of emotion in football but we need to talk about that challenge," – Steve Parish
Parish also called for Roberts to reflect on his actions, pointing out the danger posed by such tackles.
"He needs to have a long, hard look at himself because he's endangering a fellow professional with a challenge like that." – Steve Parish
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